Professor John Wong, Executive Director, National University of Singapore (NUS)
Professor Lionel Wee, Dean, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, NUS
Ms Anita Low-Lim, Chief Transformation Officer, TOUCH Community Services
Associate Professors Lee Jungup and Ong Ee Cheng, Co-Directors of the NUS Social Service Research Centre (SSRC)
Distinguished guests, partners, and colleagues
Introduction
1. Good afternoon. Thank you for inviting me to the NUS SSR-TOUCH Conference.
2. I am delighted to be joining many of you whom are committed to building healthy, thriving communities in Singapore.
3. This conference continues NUS-SSR and TOUCH’s strong tradition of being a bridge between research and practice. Today, we are bringing together expertise from the social service, education and healthcare sectors.
4. This year’s theme, “Sustained Well-Being in Future-Ready Communities”, highlights the importance of empowering communities with the resources and skills to achieve and maintain positive well-being outcomes throughout life. This will enable them to be better positioned for the future.
5. Today’s social and health challenges are getting more and more complex.
a. Our youth are increasingly facing mental health challenges. To address these challenges, we need to provide timely interventions and go upstream. This includes addressing root-cause social risk factors: such as body dysmorphia, which also relates to the commodification of the human body, which today affects not only women, but increasingly in various ways, men as well. There is also unfettered access to undesirable online content, for instance pornography, which when put together with technologies available today, such as generative AI, gives rise to phenomenon like deepfake still and video images. These are but just to name a few harms that we confront in modern society today; I could go on but that will take another conference.
b. At the same time, Singapore is considered one of the world’s “Blue Zones 2.0”. Compared to the first-generation Blue Zones like Okinawa in Japan or Ikaria in Greece, we are probably one of the Blue Zones in the world to have achieved this longevity accolade, in spite of, and not because of our cultural norms and habits, such as eating habits.
c. Demographically speaking, we are set to become “super-aged” by 2026, which means more than a quarter of our population are 65 years and above. Average lifespan in Singapore is about 84 years. However, the average number of years when we are in good health, also known as the health-span, is about 75 years.
d. This means that on average, very broadly speaking, we spend about 10 years living with illness or disability, which can be rough and tough for both our seniors and their loved ones.
6. Beyond the state of our healthcare system, and make no mistake - we do have a world class healthcare system, our health outcomes are perhaps shaped more significantly by where and how we live, work and play. In other words, social determinants of health have a far greater impact on how well we can live our lives than most would think.
a. So, for Singaporeans to achieve and sustain positive health and well-being outcomes, we need to consider the broader context in which people live and how these life domains can interact with one another.
b. Building a healthier Singapore that focuses on aging well by going upstream, starting young, means all of us must pitch in: government, community organisations, family members, and individuals. We must all work together and play an active part in addressing social-health challenges. I cannot over-emphasise this point that all of us have to pitch in.
Healthier SG and Age Well SG
7. To support our seniors to live healthier and more engaged lives, the Government launched Healthier SG in 2023.
a. The goal then was to shift the focus of our healthcare system from reactive, sickness-focused care to proactive preventive health and well-being.
b. Together with our Healthier SG partners, healthcare providers and community partners, we can better support Singaporeans to enjoy better quality of living throughout their lives.
8. Age Well SG is another key initiative to help our seniors age actively, stay socially connected, and be cared for within the bounds of the communities.
a. For instance, we are improving the physical environment for our seniors to engage in daily activities. HDB’s EASE programme also provides subsidized in-home, senior-friendly fittings like foldable grab bars and home fire alarm devices. That would help make sure everyone is safe at home. The EASE programme is highly subsidised and recently enhanced in April last year. I would behoove all our seniors and younger ones in the families to have these features in the home environment to make it safe and accessible.
b. In our neighbourhoods beyond the homes, especially those with more seniors, we have also been introducing more senior-friendly streets, therapeutic gardens and elderly fitness corners.
Health District @ Queenstown
9. I have had the privilege to work with Professor John Wong on the health district project for the past five or six years. He has been a huge source of information, knowledge and wisdom. Whatever I know about senior care and ageing, came from Prof John.
10. Another important initiative is the Health District @ Queenstown, not only because I’m MP of Queenstown. This is a collaboration between the Housing Development Board (HDB), National University Health System (NUHS), and NUS, together with many other agencies and partners.
a. What we are trying to do, is to pilot science-backed initiatives to encourage purposeful longevity and focus on preventive care, to help residents age in place and lead healthy active lifestyles. Successful initiatives can be included in future rejuvenation plans, and scaled to other towns and estates.
b. Professor John Wong, whom we will have the privilege to hear from in a few minutes, is the Co-Chair of the Health District @ Queenstown’s Steering Committee. He will be sharing about the significant role of this initiative in fostering resident engagement, contribution, and ownership of their own health to increase their “health span” and not just their lifespan.
11. Question to all of us: what does this collaborative effort look like on the ground? That means integrated care – where healthcare and social service professionals, family members, volunteers, and neighbours all come together to coordinate to support seniors, not only when they fall ill, but also to combat social isolation, keep them active, and enable them to age in place with dignity.
12. Our community partners in Queenstown have been rolling out wellness festivals, dementia-friendly spaces, accessible sports, skills workshops, and befriender programmes. Residents not only participate but join us in co-creating programmes.
a. Through these initiatives, seniors are able to spend their retirement years productively and stay active.
b. Moreover, they have opportunities to interact with younger committee and community members, which promotes intergenerational bonding and appreciation amongst different age groups.
c. This is neither a new formula for success, nor is there anything magical about it: I feel it is simply a resurrection of rejuvenation of our “kampung spirit” in action, where residents take ownership of their own health and look out for one another, alongside professionals and volunteers.
Research at the Health District
13. Research has been fundamental to the Queenstown Health District. It enables us to have a wider and deeper understanding of challenges that the community faces. This in turn helps us to identify gaps in services and areas for improvement.
14. Research is also necessary for evaluating programme effectiveness – to what extent do the programmes and local initiatives achieve their objectives? Taking a research-guided approach allows us to make evidence-based decisions in terms of how we allocate limited resources, such as by prioritising and scaling approaches that are effective and transferable.
Closing
15. To conclude, I would like to thank all of you for your efforts to build a future-oriented community, one that is grounded in sustainable well-being. Let us continue to partner one another and build upon our efforts, share knowledge, and empower Singaporeans to step up in various capacities for one another, so that we can all grow and thrive in this place that we proudly call home.
16. I hope you have had a good learning experience at this conference thus far, and I look forward to our dialogue with Prof John after his keynote presentation.
17. Thank you.